John Catsimatidis, a billionaire, revealed that his early days were filled with 70-hour work weeks at a supermarket. He expressed concern that Generation Z might be “too busy on TikTok” to follow a similar path.
During the interview with Daily Mail, he stated “That’s one of the problems we are having in our country these days, the kids are busy playing TikTok.”
Sharing his journey with the newspaper, Catsimatidis said he began to work roughly 70 hours weekly in a neighborhood supermarket after his mother “threw” him off the couch the summer following his high school graduation.
He admitted to the paper, “I was ready to sleep on the couch for the whole summer and watch television.”
Eventually, Catsimatidis claimed partial ownership of the very supermarket he had once been an employee of and expanded the business.
According to Forbes, his net worth stands at approximately $4.1 billion at the age of 74, largely thanks to his ownership of Gristedes Food, a chain of grocery stores in New York City, and Red Apple Group, a real estate and aviation company.
His career advice, as he shared with the Daily Mail, is to employ individuals who are more intelligent than you, pursue an education, and steer clear of trouble.
Moreover, he expressed his belief that many of today’s workers lack a strong work ethic.
“The harder you work, the easier it gets to win,” he declared. “Look at people only working three days a week, and I’ll show you failures.”
Catsimatidis, a father of two, is actively involved in politics, including through his radio talk show, “The Cats Roundtable,” where he has voiced his support for ex-President Donald Trump.
He joins a list of business tycoons who have criticized the work ethic of the younger generations. Previously, Whole Foods co-founder John Mackey stated that younger individuals “don’t seem like they want to work.”
Similarly, PayPal Mafia member Keith Rabois accused some employees of performing “fake work.”
However, an expert informed Insider that the idea of younger generations being more entitled and lazy is just a “generational effect” or a case of “back in my day.”
Contrarily, Generation Z has shown a greater interest in maintaining a healthy work-life balance and a lower tolerance for toxic work environments.
A 2022 survey conducted by the World Economic Forum reported that approximately half of Gen Z employees would resign from their job if it negatively affected their work-life balance.
